Bandicam codec vs. External codec

Bandicam codecs are able to compress the video while recording and use much lower CPU/GPU/RAM than other codecs.
However, if you want to get better quality videos or make smaller videos, you could try the [External Codec] option of Bandicam.
Bandicam 1.8.2 or a higher version supports the third party VFW (Video for Windows) codec - External codec.

A comparison between Bandicam Codec and External Codec

The table below shows the file sizes when Bandicam records a 1024x768 resolution video for one minute.

Using an External codec

To use an external codec, click the [Settings] button under the Video tab, and click the [...] button after selecting [- External Codec -]

Choose a codec from the codec list, and then click the Configure button.

There are a lot of different codecs out there, and the following codecs/settings illustrate how you can use an external codec.

1. x264 codec settings for video recording

x264 is a free software library for encoding video streams into the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC format.x264 is a far superior codec and can provide better picture quality at a smaller file size than XviD/DivX.
If you have a very fast and powerful computer, you should try the x264 codec.

Check "Ultrafast", "Zero Latency", "x264" and "None" at the configuration window to get the best result.
- If you want to edit with Sony Vegas or Adobe Premiere, enter "--keyint 1" in the extra command line box. » Screenshot
- If you can't see the "x264vfw-H.264/MPEG-4 AVC codec' menu from Bandicam, install both the x264vfw and the x264vfw64 codecs from http://sourceforge.net/projects/x264vfw/files/, manually start the x264 configure window, and then check the options like above.

2. Xvid codec settings for video recording

Xvid is an open-source compression codec based on the MPEG-4 ISO format.
It permits the compressing and decompressing of digital video in order to reduce the required bandwidth of video data for transmission over computer networks. If you use DivX player or Galaxy Smartphone, you could try this codec.

3. DivX codec settings for video recording

The DivX codec is proprietary software developed by DivX Inc., the DivX codec allows for high quality videos and minimal file sizes. If you have a DivX Player (hardware) or Galaxy Smartphone, you could try this codec.

Choose "1080HD Profile" at the Certification Profile, move the bar to the SPEED section, and then choose "1-pass quality-based" at Rate control mode.

4. Lagarith lossless codec settings for video recording

Lagarith is a lossless video codec intended for video editing and archiving. This codec can provide better picture quality than Motion JPEG (MJPEG), and the recorded file size is much smaller than Bandicam's lossless codecs (YV12, RGB24). If you use video editing software (Sony Vegas, Adobe Premiere or Pinnacle Studio), you should try this codec.